Yesterday I hired a teen from our church to work for $12 an hour cleaning and organizing alongside me. I wanted to make a big step forward on this organizing goal. Between the two of us we:

reorganized the roll top desk
organized my computer area
completed the organization work in my sewing studio (some individual containers need going through and I need to cull my fabric collection still)
organized my paper-crafting closet/working space

deep-cleaned the stove-top
mopped all floors
vacuumed entire house
deep-cleaned all bathrooms
polished furniture
cleaned mirrors
stripped beds and changed linens
caught up on ironing
cleaned all pet stuff
swept walkways outside

Other than the crawl space, basement and Casey’s room, this goal is pretty much completed. When everything is completely culled, reorganized and deep-cleaned, then I want to take it to the next level and each storage area be GORGEOUS. Pretty paper lining shelves. Make lavendar sachets. Customized labels on everything. I want to sigh with delight everytime I open a closet or cupboard.

IT’S GETTING THERE! 2 years ago

Craig’s closet, my closet, my nightstand, our shared dresser and an armoire that holds table linens, extra glassware, company serving wear, etc. have all been culled, cleaned and reorganized. Everything in the master bedroom except Craig’s nightstand which is such a disaster and so full of personal items that I feel I should leave it for him.

I’m really getting down to where there isn’t much left to do on the main floor of the house. It has been trimmed to the boned.

The basement, however….shudder. 2 years ago

Our linen closet is in the hall bathroom. I did this one a few years ago and it’s stayed pretty organized. I sewed fabric bags for the sheet sets. Different prints for different sizes. Than I added tagged baskets for bulbs and other household supplies. This is an old pic from a year or so ago, but it pretty much looks the same today. Which tells me the system is working because it’s self-maintaining.

I had racks on the back of the linen closet door, but they were always a mess or stuff ended up in the vanity drawers or under the sink. Or worse…on the tub edges. So today I labeled them, which hopefully will mean that hubby and the kids will put things back where they go. 2 years ago

We have a tiny little “mudroom” area by our back door. The husband recessed some shelves for the yucky shoes you don’t wan to put in your closet. Here in Alaska, yucky shoes are a way of life. :) I need to cover them with shelf liner to make them easier to wipe down without getting slivers. I put up some hooks for keys and winter gear. There is a bench on the other side of the door to sit and take shoes off. There are built-in cubbies for shoes in that bench as well. This should work… 2 years ago

Our laundry closet is in our foyer. This has positives and negatives.

The negative is that if I get behind in laundry, my guests are greeted by laundry piles as they come in the door.

The positive is that if I get behind in laundry, my guests are greeted by laundry piles as they come in the door. So…I make an effort to stay on top of it.

Since everything has to fit in a 6 ft closet, it’s usually pretty well organized. Today I simply tidied a bit. Added a few boxes and labeled things so other users can follow the system. 2 years ago

I’ve organized this before but wanted to make some containers to corral loose items and to label the shelves so family members can get on board with what I’m trying to do. Hopefully I can count this area as completely organized. The kitchen is looking really good.

2 years ago

I did everything in the foyer not that long ago, but went through it one more time today, culling a few more coats and streamlining a few more things. All cubbies, drawers, shelves, coat closet, laundry closet, etc in the foyer have been culled, cleaned and reorganized. In addition the floor has been mopped, windows washed and walls/woodwork wiped down. I need to repaint in here and we’re going to get a new front and back door. Other than that, this room is done. 2 years ago

I will complete going through all our bookshelves, movies and CDs, culling for the garage sale we’re having to raise funds for Y’s cancer treatment. I have emptied about 7 linear feet of shelving! All the shelves were wiped down and tidied as I culled. Books have been organized by subject matter and fiction alphabetically by author’s last name. I really want to pull the shelves out from the wall and vacuum behind them too. But that would mean emptying them entirely. Ugh. Not sure I’ve got it in me to do that for two walls worth of shelving but it really needs to be done. They were never anchored to the wall (earthquake proofing). So..I should take the time for that final step. Will post an update if I make it that far. 2 years ago

All the appliances have been cleaned, moved and the floor cleaned under them. The cabinets have been cleaned out, stuff set aside for garage sale, wiped down and reorganized. Floor, ceiling, walls wiped down. Everything. It’s completely done. On to the next room 2 years ago

cleaned out and organized the fridge and freezer. Just waiting on The Husband’s help now in pulling it out from the wall so I can vacuum the back of it and clean under it.

Then I’m moving on to all the kitchen cabinets. Going to be brutal. We’re having a huge fundraiser to help pay for Y’s cancer treatment. Garage sale, bake sale, bbq, silent auction, etc. I want half of my kitchen crap showing up there! 2 years ago